Angela Hill will continue to make history Saturday night.
Hill will become the first Black American woman to headline a UFC card when she faces Michelle Waterson in the Fight Night main event in Las Vegas. Hill already was the first Black American woman to sign with the UFC, which she did in 2014.
“I’m ready to put on a show,” Hill told ESPN’s Alisa Harrison this week. “[A main event is] something that I felt like I was on the cusp of for a really long time. And the fact that it’s finally happened, I’m just embracing it. And I’m really happy to be having that type of exposure.”
The bout is a key one in the women’s strawweight division. ESPN has Waterson ranked No. 7 in that weight class.
Waterson (17-8) has dropped two straight following a three-fight winning streak. The New Mexico resident has long stated her goal to become the first mother to win a UFC title, and a win here would put her back on that path. Waterson, 34, is a former Invicta FC women’s atomweight champion and a perennial contender in the UFC at strawweight since 2015. This will be her third UFC main event.
Hill (12-8) is coming off a very close split-decision loss to Claudia Gadelha in May. The San Diego resident was on a three-fight winning streak prior to that. Hill, 35, is one of the most active fighters on the UFC roster. She has the most fights in UFC women’s strawweight history (15) and the UFC record for the least time in between six consecutive fights (337 days). This will be Hill’s seventh fight since March 23, 2019.
In the co-main event, the undefeated Ottman Azaitar faces Khama Worthy in a lightweight matchup. Azaitar (12-0) won his UFC debut via first-round knockout of Teemu Packalen in September 2019. Worthy (16-6) has won seven straight.
Also on the card, Roxanne Modafferi faces Andrea Lee in a women’s flyweight rematch, exciting lightweight Bobby Green competes for the second time in six weeks against Alan Patrick and veteran Ed Herman takes on up-and-comer Mike Rodriguez in a light heavyweight bout.
Marc Raimondi, Brett Okamoto and Jeff Wagenheim recap the action as the fights in happen in Las Vegas.
Fight lineup:
Strawweight: Michelle Waterson (17-8, 5-4 UFC, +105) vs. Angela Hill (12-8, 6-6 UFC, -125)
Lightweight: Ottman Azaitar (12-0, 1-0 UFC, +115) vs. Khama Worthy (16-6, 2-0 UFC, -135)
Women’s flyweight: Roxanne Modafferi (24-18, 3-6 UFC, +250) vs. Andrea Lee (11-4, 3-2 UFC, -300)
Light heavyweight: Ed Herman (26-14 1 NC, 11-11 1 NC UFC, +200) vs. Mike Rodriguez (11-4 1 NC, 3-2 1 NC, -240)
Lightweight: Bobby Green (26-10-1, 7-5-1 UFC, -240) vs. Alan Patrick (15-2, 5-2 UFC, +200)
Men’s featherweight: Billy Quarantillo (14-2, 3-0 UFC, -240) vs. Kyle Nelson (13-3, 1-2 UFC, +200)
Women’s bantamweight: Julia Avila (8-1, 2-0 UFC, -280) vs. Sijara Eubanks (6-4, 4-2 UFC, +240)
Lightweight: Kevin Croom (21-12, 0-0 UFC, -110) vs. Roosevelt Roberts (10-2, 4-2 UFC, -110)
Heavyweight: Alexander Romanov (11-0, 0-0 UFC) vs. Roque Martinez (15-5-2, 0-0 UFC)
Catchweight (165 pounds): Jalin Turner (9-5, 2-2 UFC) vs. Brok Weaver (15-5, 1-1 UFC)
Welterweight: Bryan Barberena (14-7, 5-5 UFC, -250) vs. Anthony Ivy (8-3, 0-1 UFC ,+210)
Women’s flyweight: Sabina Mazo (8-1, 2-1 UFC, -250) vs. Justine Kish (7-2, 3-2 UFC, +210)